Microsoft® Windows® XP Networking and Security Inside Out: Also Covers Windows 2000

Encrypting Wireless Transmissions

After getting the basic configuration steps out of the way, you're ready to tackle the most important security feature on a wireless network—turning on encryption. This step protects authorized users of a wireless network from eavesdroppers by encrypting the data flow between the networked computer and the access point. Setting up encryption should be a straightforward process: enable the option on your access point, create an encryption key, and enter that key in the configuration dialog box for each wireless adapter on your network. Depending on your hardware, you should have a choice of one or more of the following options:

• Wired Equivalent Privacy (WEP) is the original encryption standard defined in the 802.11b ...